Máximo V. Soliven
Encyclopedia
Máximo Villaflor Solivén (September 4, 1929 – November 24, 2006) was a prominent Filipino
journalist and newspaper publisher. In a career that spanned six decades, he attained his greatest peak and influence with the Philippine Star, which he co-founded in 1986, and where he served as publisher until his death. His daily column published in the Star, titled "By The Way", was one of the most widely read newspaper columns in the Philippines.
in Manila
, Philippines
. His father Benito, who died from the after effects of the Bataan
Death March
and eventual imprisonment in Capas, Tarlac
during World War II
, was elected to serve in the pre-war National Assembly
. Solivén himself spent his undergraduate years at the Ateneo de Manila University
, where he received the OZANAM award for writing. Soliven received a Ph.D
from Harvard University
in International Studies.
Solivén was also proficient in Spanish, as it was also one of the languages used by his Ilocano grandparents who influenced him.
His youngest sister, Ethel Soliven Timbol
, is also a journalist. She was a writer and Lifestyle Editor of the Manila Bulletin
from 1964, retiring in 2007.
In 1960, at the age of 27, Solivén became the publisher and editor of the now-defunct The Evening News, which rose in 1960 from sixth to second highest in daily circulation in the Philippines. Soliven's work led to him becoming a Chevalier (knight) of the National Order of Merit of the French Republic; this was presented to him in 1991 by French President François Mitterrand
. Nine years later, Solivén was conferred one of Spain's most coveted decorations, the rank of Encomendero de la Orden Isabel la Católica, from King Juan Carlos
. He has also been named Journalist of the Year by the National Press Club; the award was presented by his former teacher Henry Kissinger
. Kissinger once remarked: "Max has walked with more heroes than Romulus and more heels than Adidas."
Spending more than twelve years as a foreign correspondent, Solivén traveled to many of the notable global hotspots during the 1960s, such as the Vietnam War
and the 1968 Tet Offensive therein; and the Gestapu Coup in Indonesia
in 1965, in which half a million people were massacred. Solivén also earned an exclusive when he watched the detonation of the first atomic bomb in the People's Republic of China
, where he also interviewed Premier Zhou Enlai
on the matter.
Solivén, together with Betty Go-Belmonte (wife of Quezon City
Mayor Feliciano "Sonny" Belmonte) established the broadsheet The Philippine Star
, which currently ranks second in the Philippines in readership, circulation, and advertising. They were also the co-founders of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
the preceding year with Eugenia Duran-Apostol until differences forced the two to bolt the Inquirer and form The Star.
. When President Ferdinand Marcos
declared martial law, Solivén was arrested at two o'clock in the morning of September 23, 1972.
He was jailed, then released on probation after three months, and was banned from leaving the capital for three years, and from leaving the country and from writing for seven years.
He describes the press as "our last best hope" for combating a tyrannical government. Thus, during the waning years of the Marcos rule, Soliven co-founded the Philippine Daily Inquirer
, which immediately became a prominent voice in the fight the Marcos dictatorship in the Philippines. Shortly after the assumption into office of Corazón Aquino
, Solivén left the Inquirer to co-found the Philippine Star, where he remained until his death.
, Japan
on November 24, 2006. He suffered a fatal cardiac arrest at the Narita airport. He was officially pronounced dead at 11:26AM (Tokyo Time) 24 November 2006, at the Narita Red Cross Hospital. http://english.people.com.cn/200611/24/eng20061124_324803.html http://www.mb.com.ph/MAIN2006112580634.html http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/topstories/topstories/view_article.php?article_id=34520 http://philstar.com/philstar/News200611250401.htm
After his death was confirmed, the Philippine Flag at O.B. Montessori Center, the school founded by his wife Preciosa, was on half-mast. His remains were cremated in Tokyo, Japan, and were brought home to Manila by his wife Preciosa on November 28 (The Philippine Star, Nov. 29), with full military honors (in recognition of his military service during World War II
). He was buried in Libingan Ng Mga Bayani on January 10, 2007. Solivén was posthumously awarded the Order of Lakandula
(rank of Grand Officer) by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. http://philstar.com/philstar/SpecialSections200611304701.htm
Filipino people
The Filipino people or Filipinos are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the islands of the Philippines. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines, and about 11 million living outside the Philippines ....
journalist and newspaper publisher. In a career that spanned six decades, he attained his greatest peak and influence with the Philippine Star, which he co-founded in 1986, and where he served as publisher until his death. His daily column published in the Star, titled "By The Way", was one of the most widely read newspaper columns in the Philippines.
Background
Solivén was born on September 4, 1929 at the Philippine General HospitalPhilippine General Hospital
The Philippine General Hospital is a tertiary state-owned hospital administered and operated by the University of the Philippines Manila, the University of the Philippines System's Health Sciences Center. It is the largest government hospital administered by the university, and is designated as...
in Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. His father Benito, who died from the after effects of the Bataan
Bataan
Bataan is a province of the Philippines occupying the whole of the Bataan Peninsula on Luzon. The province is part of the Central Luzon region. The capital of Bataan is Balanga City and it is bordered by the provinces of Zambales and Pampanga to the north...
Death March
Bataan Death March
The Bataan Death March was the forcible transfer, by the Imperial Japanese Army, of 75,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war after the three-month Battle of Bataan in the Philippines during World War II, which resulted in the deaths of thousands of prisoners.The march was characterized by...
and eventual imprisonment in Capas, Tarlac
Capas, Tarlac
Capas is a first class municipality in the province of Tarlac, Philippines. According to the latest census, it has a population of 122,084 people in 18,333 households. It is a part of the Third Municipal district of Tarlac with Mayor Antonio "TJ" Capitulo Rodriguez, Jr. as its incumbent Mayor and...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, was elected to serve in the pre-war National Assembly
National Assembly of the Philippines
The National Assembly of the Philippines refers to the legislature of the Philippine Commonwealth from 1935 to 1941, and the Second Philippine Republic. The National Assembly of the Commonwealth of the Philippines was created under the 1935 Constitution, which served as the Philippines' fundamental...
. Solivén himself spent his undergraduate years at the Ateneo de Manila University
Ateneo de Manila University
The Ateneo de Manila University is a private teaching and research university run by the Society of Jesus in the Philippines. It began in 1859 when the City of Manila handed control of the Escuela Municipal de Manila in Intramuros, Manila, to the Jesuits...
, where he received the OZANAM award for writing. Soliven received a Ph.D
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in International Studies.
Solivén was also proficient in Spanish, as it was also one of the languages used by his Ilocano grandparents who influenced him.
His youngest sister, Ethel Soliven Timbol
Ethel Soliven Timbol
Ethel Soliven Timbol is a journalist and was the lifestyle editor of the Manila Bulletin, published in the Philippines. She was born 22 January 1940, the ninth child of Congressman Benito Soliven and Pelagia Villaflor Soliven. She is the youngest sister of journalist Maximo V. Soliven.She finished...
, is also a journalist. She was a writer and Lifestyle Editor of the Manila Bulletin
Manila Bulletin
The Manila Bulletin , is the Philippines' largest broadsheet newspaper by circulation, followed by the Philippine Daily Inquirer. It bills itself as "The Nation's Leading Newspaper", which is its official slogan...
from 1964, retiring in 2007.
Journalism career
Solivén began his career at 20 as associate editor of the Catholic newspaper The Sentinel, as police and political reporter for the Manila Chronicle at 25, then business editor of The Manila Times from 1957 to 1960.In 1960, at the age of 27, Solivén became the publisher and editor of the now-defunct The Evening News, which rose in 1960 from sixth to second highest in daily circulation in the Philippines. Soliven's work led to him becoming a Chevalier (knight) of the National Order of Merit of the French Republic; this was presented to him in 1991 by French President François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
. Nine years later, Solivén was conferred one of Spain's most coveted decorations, the rank of Encomendero de la Orden Isabel la Católica, from King Juan Carlos
Juan Carlos I of Spain
Juan Carlos I |Italy]]) is the reigning King of Spain.On 22 November 1975, two days after the death of General Francisco Franco, Juan Carlos was designated king according to the law of succession promulgated by Franco. Spain had no monarch for 38 years in 1969 when Franco named Juan Carlos as the...
. He has also been named Journalist of the Year by the National Press Club; the award was presented by his former teacher Henry Kissinger
Henry Kissinger
Heinz Alfred "Henry" Kissinger is a German-born American academic, political scientist, diplomat, and businessman. He is a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He served as National Security Advisor and later concurrently as Secretary of State in the administrations of Presidents Richard Nixon and...
. Kissinger once remarked: "Max has walked with more heroes than Romulus and more heels than Adidas."
Spending more than twelve years as a foreign correspondent, Solivén traveled to many of the notable global hotspots during the 1960s, such as the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
and the 1968 Tet Offensive therein; and the Gestapu Coup in Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
in 1965, in which half a million people were massacred. Solivén also earned an exclusive when he watched the detonation of the first atomic bomb in the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, where he also interviewed Premier Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976...
on the matter.
Solivén, together with Betty Go-Belmonte (wife of Quezon City
Quezon City
Quezon City is the former capital and the most populous city in the Philippines. Located on the island of Luzon, Quezon City is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the National Capital Region. The city was named after Manuel L...
Mayor Feliciano "Sonny" Belmonte) established the broadsheet The Philippine Star
The Philippine Star
The Philippine Star is a daily English-language broadsheet newspaper based in Manila and circulated nationwide in the Philippines. Owned and published by PhilSTAR Daily, Inc, it was founded on July 28, 1986 by veteran journalists Max Soliven, Betty Go-Belmonte and Art Borjal...
, which currently ranks second in the Philippines in readership, circulation, and advertising. They were also the co-founders of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
Philippine Daily Inquirer
The Philippine Daily Inquirer, popularly known as the Inquirer, is the most widely read broadsheet newspaper in the Philippines, with a daily circulation of 260,000 copies. It is one of the Philippines' newspapers of record...
the preceding year with Eugenia Duran-Apostol until differences forced the two to bolt the Inquirer and form The Star.
Martial Law Era
By 1972, Max Solivén was one of the two most influential columnists at the Manila TimesManila Times
The Manila Times is the oldest existing English language newspaper in the Philippines. It is published daily by The Manila Times Publishing Corp. with editorial and administrative offices at 371 A...
. When President Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
declared martial law, Solivén was arrested at two o'clock in the morning of September 23, 1972.
He was jailed, then released on probation after three months, and was banned from leaving the capital for three years, and from leaving the country and from writing for seven years.
He describes the press as "our last best hope" for combating a tyrannical government. Thus, during the waning years of the Marcos rule, Soliven co-founded the Philippine Daily Inquirer
Philippine Daily Inquirer
The Philippine Daily Inquirer, popularly known as the Inquirer, is the most widely read broadsheet newspaper in the Philippines, with a daily circulation of 260,000 copies. It is one of the Philippines' newspapers of record...
, which immediately became a prominent voice in the fight the Marcos dictatorship in the Philippines. Shortly after the assumption into office of Corazón Aquino
Corazon Aquino
Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino was the 11th President of the Philippines and the first woman to hold that office in Philippine history. She is best remembered for leading the 1986 People Power Revolution, which toppled Ferdinand Marcos and restored democracy in the Philippines...
, Solivén left the Inquirer to co-found the Philippine Star, where he remained until his death.
Death
After garnering many accolades in Philippine journalism, Solivén died at age 77 in TokyoTokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
on November 24, 2006. He suffered a fatal cardiac arrest at the Narita airport. He was officially pronounced dead at 11:26AM (Tokyo Time) 24 November 2006, at the Narita Red Cross Hospital. http://english.people.com.cn/200611/24/eng20061124_324803.html http://www.mb.com.ph/MAIN2006112580634.html http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/topstories/topstories/view_article.php?article_id=34520 http://philstar.com/philstar/News200611250401.htm
After his death was confirmed, the Philippine Flag at O.B. Montessori Center, the school founded by his wife Preciosa, was on half-mast. His remains were cremated in Tokyo, Japan, and were brought home to Manila by his wife Preciosa on November 28 (The Philippine Star, Nov. 29), with full military honors (in recognition of his military service during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
). He was buried in Libingan Ng Mga Bayani on January 10, 2007. Solivén was posthumously awarded the Order of Lakandula
Philippine orders and decorations
The orders and decorations conferred upon civilians and military personnel in the Republic of the Philippines, are listed by order of precedence. The first list is of civilian awards, which take precedence over and above military awards. The next list is of awards conferred upon the military or...
(rank of Grand Officer) by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. http://philstar.com/philstar/SpecialSections200611304701.htm